[Athenian200]

Originally Posted by mysavior

the ISFJ's are fucking full of it. To be more specific, I begin to find myself in a power struggle with the ISFJ's as they begin to see that I am mentally apt. Its really weird. You think they have a good impression of you, and think you are fine, but based on this bullshit response I get down the road, its like I've been judged as the scrawny, awkward dumbass. Pretty much, I got taken for granted, or seen as just some dude, and so now when I start putting some skills on display, they (specifically the men, here) start getting nervous/worried/etc that this nobody is going to outshine them. This is so weird. What's going on here? Maybe they were expecting a timid pushover that they could string around their finger and do with as they please, but then when I begin to assert myself, they start feeling like idiots, and think, "who the fuck does this guy think he is?" Anyway, the worry begins to materialize in the form of some underhanded and aggressive actions to (as far as I can see) remind me, or make it clear to me who is in charge. Its like they start worrying that I'm going to hold something over them, or look down on them like they are irrelevant ("I'm not going to be some little shit nobody to this clown"). Now, its weird and unexpected and aggressive and all that, but its done with a smile, you know, so I cant call out "bitch" or "pussy," I just pretty much have to deal with it, or ignore it, and go on with life. Usually, I've ended up just fine, but these bids for superiority never seem to end. Everytime I meet up with these people again, its the same bullshit.

Well... they're not as smart as you, and they know it (tertiary Ti). They're worried that people will be impressed by your intelligence, and then you'll be ahead of them in the social hierarchy, and thus they'll have to defer to you. They don't want that, so they start showing other people how they're better than you, because they interpret your showing off your intelligence as an attempt to curry favor and get into people's good graces. So they want to stay one step ahead of you, so that they can feel like they're as good as you are even though they're not as intelligent. They think you looking down on them for being less intelligent, because they look down on people who are less intelligent (even though they don't say it).

They don't feel intimidated until you show intelligence, however, because they're probably more clever in the Ti sense than most people they encounter (other SJ's). So their moderate wit becomes their "added security" in maintaining their position even when unusual things start to happen, and they see you as a threat to it. They wouldn't admit to any of this, though, because it would make them look bad. Basically, underneath the kindness, there's an immature, competitive NT who can't stand that someone is smarter than them.

At least, that's what I picture when I try to see this from their perspective.